The XL2 Lasergun (Laser Cannon in Serious Sam's Bogus Detour, XL2 Laser in Serious Sam 4) or simply Laser, is an experimental energy weapon that appears in the Serious Sam series. Introduced in Serious Sam: The First Encounter, it reappears in Serious Sam: The Second Encounter, Serious Sam 3: BFE, Serious Sam's Bogus Detour, Serious Sam 4, and Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem. It should be noted, however, that the Lasergun only appears in New Game+ mode in the standalone expansion pack.
The XL4 Lasergun, a weapon that appears in Serious Sam: Double D, is the successor to this weapon.
Overview[]
The XL2 Lasergun is an experimental energy weapon that was created by reverse-engineering energy weapons used by Mental's Bio-mechanoids. While the weapoin is still in early development stages, it has been proven to be an excellent energy weapon fit for many combat scenarios.[1][2] The Lasergun has multiple barrels which fire in rapid succession, allowing the weapon to deliver a sustained barrage of "slowlight" laser pulses without running into danger of overheating.[2]
The body of the weapon is entirely made of titanium which, in addition to being lightweight, further contributes to alleviating the common overheating problem that traditional energy weapons all too often face.[2][1] Its revolutionary anti-recoil technology manages to completely eliminate the kickback caused by other slowlight launchers, making the Lasergun precise and easy to use.[3]
The Lasergun fires a single beam when the player presses the fire key. Holding down the fire key allows for continuous fire. Like its counterpart, the XM214-A Minigun, the Lasergun does not need to be reloaded. On the other hand, there is no delay before firing the weapon. While the lasers fired by the weapon deal more damage than the minigun and may be a more suitable choice for when a big fight breaks out, it can only carry up to 400 cells on Normal difficulty, and the lasers take time to reach a target, as they are projectiles. As this is the case, this makes the Lasergun more suited for fights indoors or in enclosed spaces, and at close to medium range when in open areas.
In Serious Sam 3: BFE, the Lasergun appears exclusively as a secret weapon, thus it cannot be obtained normally unless the player searches in hidden parts of the level(s) to find it (an example would be the "spooky hallway" secret in the level "Into the Spider's Nest", in the Egyptian Museum's basement). Ammo for the Lasergun also only appears in secrets. In the Serious Sam 3 expansion pack, Jewel of the Nile, the Lasergun appears as a normal weapon, and ammo for it is relatively common.
In Serious Sam 4 and Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem, the Lasergun behaves more differently compared to previous games - continuously firing the weapon will heat up the weapon and gradually increase its damage output. Its initial damage output is at least 50% higher than in the previous games, dealing a base damage value of 30 per projectile and going to a maximum of 40.
Alternate fire mode[]
The death ray in action.
Unique to Serious Sam 4, the Lasergun has a secondary fire mode, called the 'death ray', that allows the weapon to fire a continous beam of energy that deals 400% more damage than the weapon's usual damage output and has a penetrating effect, similar to cannonballs fired from the SBC Cannon.[2]
While the death ray is extremely powerful and can wipe out entire hordes of weak enemies and quickly destroy tougher ones, it does consume a lot of ammunition in the process - each shot consumes two units of ammunition and is fired every 0.05 seconds, resulting in a firing rate double that of the minigun (1200 rounds per minute before taking into account the doubled ammo spending). This fire mode is acquired normally in both game campaigns.
Appearances[]
As the Lasergun is a powerful weapon, it has much rarer compared to other weapons, and is not usually acquired until after the player has progressed late through the game. The weapon can, however, be acquired earlier in secrets, along with its ammunition.
Serious Sam: The First Encounter[]
The Lasergun is first obtained in "Dunes" once the player enters the courtyard leading to the suburbs. This is the weapon's only appearance in the game, although its ammo appears rather frequently in later levels.
Serious Sam: The Second Encounter[]
The Lasergun is obtained in "The Pit" in the Mayan era, "Courtyards of Gilgamesh" in the Ancient Persian era, and "Land of the Damned" in the Medieval era.
Serious Sam 3: BFE[]
It is worth noting that, unlike previous games, the Lasergun is a secret weapon, and not a regular weapon the player would normally find without secrets. Because of this, ammo is also limited by how many secret cells, or spare secret Laserguns the player comes upon. On the other hand, if the player conserves ammo and picks up all secrets that relate to it, they can reach its maximum ammo capacity part way through either "Unearthing the Sun", "The Guardian of Time", or "Broken Wings" (the latter only in Serious Sam Fusion as it has a new Fusion-exclusive secret containing 200 electricity, which is a trap as it will spawn an Adult Arachnoid once the ammo has been collected).
Jewel of the Nile[]
In this expansion pack, the Lasergun now appears as a regular weapon, and is not exclusive to being found as a secret. Sam first obtains the Lasergun inside a Sirian chamber within the tomb of Isis at the end of the first level "Gathering of the Gods", as shown in the level's ending cutscene. Unlike the main campaign, ammo for the Lasergun is much more abundant and appears along with other types of ammunition.
Serious Sam's Bogus Detour[]
The Lasergun is first acquired in "Knee Deep in Sand", and appears scattered throughout the other levels in the later portions of the game.
Serious Sam Classics: Revolution[]
In the Bright Island campaign, the Lasergun is first found in "Forlorn Ruins", but can be found earlier as a secret in "Crystal Cove".
Serious Sam 4[]
The Lasergun, unlike in Serious Sam 3, is no longer found in secrets, though it is still a very rare weapon, and is not obtained all the up the twelfth level in the game, "In Carcassonne". The weapon appears again for the second time in the final level, "From Earth With Love". The Lasergun's weapon upgrade can be found in "Anathema Unto God", and again in the final level.
Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem[]
The Lasergun is usable in Siberian Mayhem, but only via the New Game+ mode; it is first found in "A Smell Of Petroleum Prevails", inside the oil rig where Sam tries to contact Quinn. Outside of New Game+, it is also usable in the modifable version of the game. The Lasergun functions exactly the same as it does in Serious Sam 4. In the normal campaign, the XPMR "Burner" Raygun replaces the Lasergun, although both weapons coexist in New Game+. The death ray upgrade is found in an equipment case in "Crime And Punishment", in the large open area where the player gets the SBC Cannon.
Upgrades[]
Serious Sam's Bogus Detour[]
|
Overcharged Laser |
|---|---|
| Your Laser Cannon projectiles will explode upon impact dealing splash damage in a small radius. | |
Serious Sam 4/Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem[]
|
Death Ray |
|---|---|
| This upgrade enables a secondary fire mode for the XL2 which is 400% more powerful, but also extremely draining. This 'death ray' is a continous beam that penetrates hostiles and devastates everything in its path. | |
Tactics[]
General[]
- The Lasergun is a great alternative to the XM214-A Minigun, as it deals a similar amount of damage. Like the minigun, however, it does drain ammunition quickly if it is used too often.
- The Lasergun is a great weapon for taking out hordes of Kleers. The beams fired by the weapon do great damage against a Kleer, and its rate of fire is fast enough to quickly do a lot of damage on a horde of them.
- Because it takes time for the lasers to reach a target, the Lasergun is not very effective against fast enemies at long range, such as Scythian Witch-Harpies. The player will very likely waste ammo trying to kill them while it would be far easier to switch to another weapon which would use less ammo to kill the same enemies.
- Compared to the minigun, aiming should be done slightly upwards as otherwise lasers can explode on hilltops, tops of ledges, or other objects/walls instead.
- While the weapon fires quickly and its projectiles are also rapid, it's still important to lead targets so as not to waste ammo due to the Lasergun's projectile nature.
Serious Sam: The First Encounter/Serious Sam: The Second Encounter[]
- The Lasergun is useful against slow or stationary enemies at any range, such as Common Aludran Reptiloids, Cucurbitos, Arachnoids, Fiendian Reptiloid Demons, Highlander Aludran Reptiloids, Major Bio-mechanoids, and Zumb'uls. Slow enemies are very easy to predict, making it easy to land shots on them.
- One or two lasers are enough to destroy a Fiendian Reptiloid Demon's fireballs in the HD releases. They can also be used to destroy Ugh-Zan III's fireballs during the boss fight.
- The Lasergun is best used when being attacked by a wide variety of enemies and rushing enemies have already approached to their attack range.
Serious Sam 3: BFE[]
- Remember that in this game, both the weapon and its ammunition can only be found in secrets during the campaign, so it is recommended to use the weapon against tough enemies, confrontation of hordes of weak or medium enemies (such as Beheaded Rocketeers, Cloned Soldiers, Gnaars, Juvenile Antaresian Spiders, Kleers, etc.) or as a last resort.
- The Lasergun is useful against slow or stationary enemies at any range, such as Adult Arachnoids, Khnums, Major Bio-mechanoids, Scrapjacks, and Technopolyps (in Serious Sam Fusion only). Slow enemies are very easy to predict, making it easy to land shots on them.
- The Lasergun does no damage to Khnums and Technopolyps in the original version of the game, so don't use it against them.
Serious Sam's Bogus Detour[]
- The Laser Cannon is a strong weapon against large groups of Beheaded Kamikazes, Gnaars, Kleers, Minor Bio-mechanoids, Orc Captains, Orc Troopers and Sirian Werebulls, though it is best not to the use the weapon too frequently, as this will use up ammunition.
- With the Overcharged Laser upgrade, the Laser Cannon is a much more efficient weapon against groups of small to medium-sized enemies, as the beams can eliminate them all quickly.
- The Overcharged Laser upgrade can also be used in more strategic ways, such as destroying obstacles blocking the player's path or for gaining the advantage during a firefight in enclosed spaces like small rooms.
Serious Sam 4/Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem[]
- Like in previous games, the Lasergun is a very effective weapon against hordes of Aludran Microhoppers, Zubenhakrabian Spiders, beheaded enemies, Gnaars, Kleers, Processed Anthropolyps, and Space Mummies. The lasergun requires only two shots to kill a Microhopper regardless of the weapon's heat.
- Continously firing the Lasergun allows the weapon to easily finish off large groups of enemies, including medium targets like Common Aludran Reptiloids, Draconian Burners, and Scrapjacks.
- The death ray is extremely useful for destroying hordes of enemies or Octanian Sentry Towers with their cores exposed, but firing it for too long will easily erase a lot of the weapon's ammo.
- The death ray is an excellent anti-Saggitarian Sidewinder weapon, as it can rapidly drain their health in mere seconds. Keep in mind that the crosshair needs to continue tracking them in order to maximize damage potential and that Sidewinders are moving aerial targets.
- The Lasergun is useful as an alternative to the Burner if the player runs out of ammo for the latter. Although the Burner has a more powerful explosive effect, the Lasergun's individual projectiles deal more damage than the Burner's beam, especially at maximum heat. The Lasergun is also more effective against groups of Beheaded Kamikazes than the Burner.
- It is also a good weapon to use against Howard Brand, especially with a Rage Serum active. With this, the Lasergun can easily deal a lot of damage to Brand, which is useful if the player wants to defeat him on Serious difficulty in singleplayer without loading any mid-battle saves to get the "Veni, Vidi, Vici" achievement.
- The Lasergun is additionally highly effective against both Lord Achriman and the Cryomorph Gnaar Pair, although it is more effective against the latter since Achriman tends to fly around frequently, making him harder to hit unless the death ray is used against him. The Lasergun can even shoot down the ice chunks thrown by the Cryomorph Gnaars.
Behind the scenes[]
- The Lasergun did not appear in Test 1 and Test 2, but its ammo model could be found in both. In Test 2, the Lasergun had a different texture, the ammo and sounds appeared in Test 2, and they were the same as in The Second Encounter.
- The Lasergun had a different model in Alpha, and featured a metal handle like the minigun. In its viewmodel, Sam's hand can be seen gripping the handle.
- During the development of Serious Sam 3, the Lasergun originally reused the Serious Sam HD model.
Related achievements[]
Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter[]
|
| |
| Kill 1000 enemies with the Laser gun. |
Serious Sam VR: The Second Encounter[]
|
| |
| Kill 200 enemies with the Laser gun. |
Serious Sam Fusion[]
|
| |
| Kill 200 enemies with the Laser gun. |
Trivia[]
- The XL2 may be inspired by the Laser Cannon, an electricity-powered weapon from the Quake expansion pack, Scourge of Armagon. The main differences between the two are that the XL2's projectiles do not bounce off walls and that the Laser Cannon has three barrels instead of four.
- Additionally, the XL2 is renamed to the Laser Cannon in Serious Sam's Bogus Detour, further referencing the weapon of the same name from Quake.
- The Lasergun's firing sound in The First Encounter is different from the sound used from The Second Encounter to Serious Sam 3. In the classic version of The First Encounter, the Lasergun sounds much like the laser cannons on a TIE Fighter from Star Wars. Subsequent re-releases of The First Encounter and Serious Sam 3 use the new firing sound introduced in The Second Encounter.
- The Lasergun, Thompson submachine gun, XOP Flamethrower, and Minor Bio-mechanoids' lasers have a bug in the classic releases (except Revolution) that occurs every 4096 seconds of game time - their rate of fire will be cut by 33%. On the next set of 4096 seconds their firing rate will be reverted back to the normal values. The amount of seconds of this bug happening increases exponentially.
- The Lasergun is one of four weapons that does not appear in the Legend of the Beast expansion pack. The others are the MK III Grenade Launcher, SBC Cannon, and the XM214-A Minigun.
Gallery[]
Serious Sam: The First Encounter/Serious Sam: The Second Encounter[]
Pre-release[]
Retail[]
Serious Sam (Palm OS)[]
Serious Sam 3: BFE[]
Serious Sam's Bogus Detour[]
Serious Sam 4/Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem[]
List of appearances[]
- Serious Sam: The First Encounter (First appearance)
- Serious Sam: The Second Encounter
- Serious Sam: Xbox (non-canonical appearance)
- Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter (non-canonical appearance)
- Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter (non-canonical appearance)
- Serious Sam 3: BFE
- Serious Sam VR: The First Encounter (non-canonical appearance)
- Serious Sam VR: The Second Encounter (non-canonical appearance)
- Serious Sam's Bogus Detour (non-canonical appearance)
- Serious Sam VR: The Last Hope
- Serious Sam 3 VR: BFE (non-canonical appearance)
- Serious Sam Classics: Revolution (non-canonical appearance)
- Serious Sam 4
- Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem (New Game+ or moddable version only)
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Serious Sam: The First Encounter NETRICSA description
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Serious Sam 4 NETRICSA description
- ↑ Serious Sam 3: BFE NETRICSA description